The present invention relates in general to cartridges for guns, and in particular to a new and useful adaptation cartridge for an adapter barrel system for the firing of subcaliber ammunition from a gun barrel of larger caliber, with a centrally inserted cartridge chamber and a firing pin casing axially following the chamber.
An adaptation cartridge which, as to form and weight, corresponds to an original cartridge of live ammunition is used for training purposes, and is received centrally in a cartridge chamber for a subcaliber ammunition. The firing pin casing of such cartridges serves as transmission element for detonating the cartridge and at the same time as a supporting element for absorption of gas pressure generated in the gun. This means that the firing pin casing takes support on the end side on the breech mechanism of the weapon, e.g. an armor-piercing gun. When closing the breech mechanism, the axially displaceable firing pin casing is pushed forward to the cartridge chamber and thus unlocks the firing pin centrally inserted in the casing. Since after firing a residual stress remains in the adapter barrel system, the firing pin casing is pressed axially against the breech mechanism with great force due to the expansion of the cartridge. The disadvantage of this is that for opening the breech to remove the empty cartridge case, much force must be exerted, and this in turn leads to ejection problems.